


Not According To Plan

by freetobetired



Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: F/M, Inu Youkai (InuYasha), Post-Canon, Transformation, Youkai, Youkai Higurashi Kagome, inutachi - Freeform, jewel does something unexpected
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-02-04
Packaged: 2021-03-14 19:47:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28800798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/freetobetired/pseuds/freetobetired
Summary: The Jewel has one final surprise for the Inutachi. Now they have to figure out how to deal with this rather unexpected result.
Relationships: Higurashi Kagome/Sesshoumaru, Miroku/Sango (InuYasha)
Comments: 17
Kudos: 127
Collections: Inuyasha Fics





	1. An Unexpected Consequence

Kagome stared at the Jewel in her hand. All the battles fought, the blood shed, and pain endured had led to this moment, this little bauble which looked so innocent with it’s pink glow in her grasp. The moment felt unreal. She had trouble believing their journey was nearly over.

She looked up and surveyed the scene. Sango and Miroku stood together, bracing on each other in exhaustion with little Shippo held in Sango’s secure embrace. Inuyasha slumped over his sword which he had stuck in the soil. She’d rarely seen the hanyou so weary and quiet. Even Sesshomaru, Daiyoukai Lord of the West and unexpected ally, was present. He was seemingly unruffled by the recent battle which gruesome aftermath surrounded them in the middle of Inuyasha’s Forest.

Kagome turned slightly and took in the damage behind her. One of Naraku’s final blows had destroyed the well which had been her only transport home before they had made their final strike on the evil spider hanyou. She felt the horror and loss stinging in her heart but forced her attention back to the Jewel. She had to grieve later. At this moment she needed to make an unselfish wish and finish this whole mess. She would never to let another catastrophe to be caused by the deceiving bauble ever again. Everyone was counting on her and she felt the burden now more since the start of the mission. That day with the carrion crow felt so long ago now. The only question was what would happen after? What would happen if she made the wrong wish?

She pushed those thoughts away with a shake of her head and a determined look settled on her face. She had learned to trust herself over the past year, both with her intuition and abilities as a Miko. She knew what to do.

Taking a deep breath she looked at her friends one last time. All held a great sadness and relief in their eyes except of course Sesshomaru, passive as ever. She almost felt amusement at his stony demeanor. With that she gripped the Jewel tight.

_I wish the Jewel to disappear forever._

The Jewel glowed bright, forcing everyone to close or avert their eyes, and rose out of her palm. Kagome swore she could hear both an agonized screech and joyous laughter come at once from it before it disintegrated in a firework explosion of pink light. For a second she had the horrified thought that the Jewel had shattered again before she felt something hit her in the chest. An agony unlike anything she ever had physically felt in her life erupted from within her body, as though someone had injected poison directly into her heart and it was racing through her veins.

Kagome felt herself go down to her hands and knees, hot tears falling from her closed eyes as she screamed willing the agony to disappear. Was she dying? She thought she heard more screaming around her. Had she condemned her friends to a agonizing death as well? She felt a well of shame and fear take root amidst the pain.

_Kami, what had she done?_

Her vision went black.

* * *

Sesshomaru watched in a mix horror and fascination as the humans writhed in agony, creaming so he felt he would be deaf after this ordeal. Inuyasha and the fox kit were desperately trying to help their companions, shouting as they went, begging for help to any Kami who would listen.

He simply stood in place as he felt something new. His eyes widened a fraction. The cursed Jewel certainly knew how to astonish.

Yoki was emerging from within the humans, young and weak as though they were newborn demons fresh from their mother’s womb. The new energy began to spiral around them, picking up strength as though a young demon was maturing within moments of being born. The one around the Miko crackled as her innate reiki and new yoki seemed to war with each other. He wondered if she particularly would survive whatever was happening.

Inuyasha and the kit had fallen silent as they watched in horror at the energy swirling around their companions. The kit had even jumped onto Inuyasha’s shoulders to hide behind his hair. 

The humans were beginning to change, their scents and bodies shifting into something new. The three unaffected knew at once what was happening and Sesshomaru felt his beast demanding to be released. He fought it and simply continued to watch.

Within a moment, three large inuyokai stood where the three humans had collapsed, their screams turned into howls. Two black inus and one dark brown stood where the Miko, monk, and slayer had been. Inuyasha and the kit’s eyes were wide as their noses flared taking in the new scents and forms of their companions. Another moment and all was quiet as the three new inu fell into silence.

Sesshomaru could scent their overpowering fear and confusion.

“K-Kagome?” Inuyasha whispered as he took a step toward the transformed Miko. The black inu quickly snapped at the hanyou, her beast causing her to not recognize him as friend. Inuyasha quickly leaped out of the way of her large teeth. All three began to growl unsure of what to do. They scented the air and their instincts were trying to decipher who was friend and foe. Trying to figure out in their muddled minds what to do next. The three whimpered.

Sesshomaru debated what to do. These were his half-brother’s problem surely as they were of his pack. However, seeing the Miko-turned-inu snap at the hanyou had given him more pause. As Daiyoukai, Lord of the Western Lands, and, more importantly, the closest related alpha, he would be shirking a responsibility if he simply let three untrained, newborn Daiyoukai wreak havoc over Nipon. His honor would be tainted.

Growling, Sesshomaru made his decision. His eyes flashed red as his yoki surrounded him and soon his beast stood proudly in place gaining attention of all present. Inuyasha quickly got himself and the kit out of the middle, knowing things could get ugly quick and he was still recovering from battle. Shippo was shaking in his arms.

“What’s going to happen now Inuyasha? What did the Jewel do?” whimpered the kit.

“I don’t know kid. I don’t know."

They simply watched and waited to see what would happen, trying to ignore a sense of foreboding.

In the meantime, the three new inu growled at fearsome silver beast now in their midst, tense as to prepare for a fight. The silver beast released his own growl which shook the earth around them, releasing a wave of his yoki to press against theirs.

“ _Submit,”_ he ordered. The three instantly lowered themselves, whining and unsure. Sesshomaru growled again, pressing his yoki harder against theirs, suffocatingly so. “ _Submit foolish pups!”_ His red eyes burned brighter and they all rolled onto their backs, exposing their necks.

Satisfied, Sesshomaru let up on his barrage. The scene had calmed and he transformed back into his human appearance, the rest instinctually following suit, as if they’d done so a hundred times before. The three friends found themselves laying on the ground, blinking in shock as they recovered their minds now that their beasts lay dormant. They peeked up at the lord.

“What the hell just happened?” Inuyasha shouted, as was his way when something happened he didn’t understand. He appeared beside the group, to check on his friends but didn’t dare touch them, remembering the glint of teeth. Sesshomaru answered him as the other three picked themselves off the ground.

“They are inuyokai now, and are now of this one’s pack.” He explained, almost sounding bored as he stared at his half-brother. Inuyasha opened his mouth to ask what that meant when Shippo jumped off his shoulder and ran towards the Miko who wobbled slightly on her feet. Inuyasha shouted for him to stop, scared of what may happen, but the kit didn’t listen.

“Kagome!” he shouted as he raced into her arms. Kagome hugged him tight and began to cry. “Oh, Shippo,” she sobbed, “I’m so sorry! Are you okay?”

Shippo cried too. “Y-yeah,” he sniffled, “But what about you guys? You look and smell so different now. Like inuyokai.”

Kagome indeed _felt_ different. Almost more _alive_ somehow. She looked up at Sango and Miroku while also wrinkling her nose at a barrage of scents she hadn’t noticed before, some less pleasing than others. They each gasped as they saw each other. Sango and Miroku both still _looked_ like Sango and Miroku but still were inexplicably different. Both had pointed ears peaking out of their heads and claws on their fingers. New markings adorned their face as well. Sango still had her usual pink eye shadow but now had the addition of delicate red stripes on her cheeks and her eyes had changed from a rich dark brown to an astonishing gold. Miroku, who had always been clean of face, now bore purple shadow on his eyelids and a dark blue stripe on each cheek. The colors brought out his purple eyes which now had more of a glow to them in Kagome’s opinion.

Kagome felt something different about her mouth and hesitantly brought a finger up to probe. “Ow!” she yelped as she tasted a bead of hot iron blood in her mouth. She had pricked her finger (also with a new set of claws) on her fang. They had grown fangs. She tentatively reached felt for an ear too and, sure enough, it tapered into a point like the others.

Quickly, she located her yellow bag on the edge of the clearing and ran to it having put Shippo down again. She surprised herself at how fast moved and looked back wide-eyed to see everyone else staring at her. The time it took her to reach the bag from where she had been must have been less than a second. She blushed but then turned her attention back to the bag and pulled out a compact mirror (she again wrinkled her nose at the variety of scents coming from the bag. The fabric smelled of sweat and body odor and a variety of other things). Opening the mirror she gazed at her reflection and gasped. Sure enough a demoness stared back.

Kagome gazed at her reflection, trying to make sense of the changes she was seeing. Her blue eyes, unique among humans of Japan anyway, now burned brighter than ever, complimented by green liner on her eyes and delicate pink stripes on each cheek. She opened her mouth and inspected her fangs. They glinted sharp and pearly white in the evening sun.

She turned and looked at her companions. Most had a look of bewilderment on their face.

‘ _What are we going to do now?’_


	2. Not According to Plan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who left kudos, bookmarked, and commented!

The group stayed in the clearing while Sesshomaru collected his ward from Kaeda’s hut in Edo. Kagome kneeled by the remains of the well, claws digging in the dirt as she let herself grieve. The rest of the group sat by the edge of the trees, allowing her a small amount of privacy, ignoring her gut wrenching sobs.

Of all the scenarios she had thought of before the final confrontation with Naraku the well being destroyed had never crossed her mind, by accident or otherwise. She never thought her way home would be lost to her and now she felt all the more the fool. Her only hope to see Mama, Gramps, or Sota now was to somehow survive the next 500 years

Sango and Miroku found comfort in each other’s arms and newly discovered scents. In one way they were relieved. Miroku’s kazanna had disappeared and Sango’s village was avenged. However they still felt adrift. They had talked about marriage and settling down, maybe even reviving the Slayer’s Village and finding Kohaku.

Sango curled deeper into Miroku’s arms and for once his wandering hand stayed still.

Shippo sat silent at Inuyasha’s side, exhausted by the day’s events and worried about his friends. Kirara cuddled with the kit and he accepted her comfort. Inuyasha himself was trying to determine what would happen now that his three human friends, the only ones he’s ever had, were now inuyokai; especially now Sesshomaru claimed them as pack. He hardly new what “pack” meant having never been part of one besides what his instincts or Myoga had told him. He wasn’t sure he liked it but he sure as hell wouldn’t be able to train three full yokai about their new world when he hardly knew it himself.

His eyes turned to Kagome, weeping and howling at the well. He doubted she even realized she was doing it. What would happen between them now? They weren’t lovers (he blushed slightly at the thought) but he didn’t want to lose his place at her side. She was his friend and he would be damned if he left her alone. Even if Sesshomaru didn’t let him in the pack he would fight the bastard everyday just to be by his friends’ side. Trail them if he had to.

Speaking of the devil, Inuyasha sensed the prick before he saw him.The lord came into view with the little girl he claimed curled in his arms and Jaken following silently behind for once with Ah-Un in tow. Inuyasha’s eyes widened when he caught the new scent.

Rin looked at the group, golden eyes wide and pointed ears twitching as she took them in. Her nostrils flared slightly as she took in their scent.

‘ _Well that was rather… unexpected,’_ was the collective group thought.

Who would have guessed Sesshomaru’s ward would be affected by the wish as well.

* * *

When Sesshomaru had entered the village to collect his ward the entire place was celebrating. The old Miko must have announced Naraku’s demise. He stopped outside the old woman’s hut and caught the scent of something he hadn’t seen in centuries. It was at once familiar and strange.

_A pup? Where was Rin?_

He stepped inside and saw the old Miko trying to comfort a small figure in a corner. She was wearing Rin’s kimono and had her shock of black hair but Rin didn’t have the scent of a inu pup, or markings denoting her a part of the clan, or claws and teeth for that matter.

Sesshomaru caught the eye of the old priestess.

“It happened not long ago, after a release of powerful energy near the well. Poor thing doesn’t know how to handle it.”

He inclined his head slightly, acknowledging the woman, and walked to the new pup. She stood and hugged him, seeking security in his familiar presence. Sesshomaru lifted her into his arms and took a moment to familiarize himself more with her new unique scent. It was...pleasing and his beast rumbled in approval.

“ _Pup,”_ it declared, “ _our pup.”_

“Is everyone alright?” asked the old Miko. Sesshomaru kept his gaze on Rin, taking in every new detail. He debated whether to tell her of what happened. In the end he couldn’t see any harm coming of it.

“The humans have all changed as Rin. We shall travel to This One’s mother’s shiro for the foreseeable future.”

Kaede nodded to herself, staring into the cooking fire. “I know you will protect them Lord Sesshomaru, thank you.” Their eyes met for a moment, wizened meeting cold. Sesshomaru exited the hut with Rin looking over his shoulder, waving solemnly at the old woman.

* * *

Sesshomaru had decided to let the pack rest by Goshinboku that night before setting off in the morning. Even if yokai needed little sleep or rest this group was mentally exhausted, even if their physical injuries had miraculously healed when they became yokai. They instead spent the evening familiarizing themselves with their strengthened senses, especially their sense of smell. They couldn’t decipher everything their noses told them but they could at least begin to identify each of their own unique scents.

The world seemed to bombard them with new sensations all at once and it was almost too much for their formerly human brains to take in. Acclimation would take awhile and they would likely have some killer headaches in the meantime. Poor Rin probably had the worst of it as tried to cover her nose and hide in Ah-Un’s side.

Kagome’s nose twitched trying to make sense of all the odors around her. Little Rin smelled of flowers and fresh air. Shippo smelled more like cinnamon and fire (not smoke, she noted, it was more pure than that) and even Kirara had a similar scent of flame and, her nose wrinkled in a bit of distaste, _cat_. She hated to think that of the sweet fire cat but she couldn’t help it. Rin and Shippo both smelled of… youth?

‘ _Pups,’_ claimed a voice in the back of her mind. She accepted it.

Miroku and Sango were a bit more difficult as they had continued to cling to each other and muddling their scents but Kagome thought she had figured it out. Sango she believed smelled oddly of leather with something floral over it. Not a bad combination, it was feminine and fierce like her dear sister of her heart. Miroku was almost overpoweringly of incense and ink. Like a temple. There was also something very masculine in his scent. In Sesshomaru’s and Inuyasha’s too actually. Kagome guessed it was hormones.

Inuyasha smelled like grass and sunshine and something else that the same voice in the back of her mind put as _hanyo_.

Then there was Sesshomaru. The proud lord smelled heavenly, like lightning and ice and something almost musky. _“Alpha,”_ said the voice, _“Powerful, dangerous.”_

Kagome shuddered.

* * *

Sesshomaru and Inuyasha went hunting for their meal that night. While they were out Kagome had started a fire and waited for them to return. The flames were nice to stare into while trying to forget about the day for awhile. What she really wanted was her mother with her warm hugs and understanding smile. She’d probably making her special soup too. She always did when someone had a bad day.

Instead Kagome held Shippo. Something possessive had come over her when he had sat in her lap and the young woman soothed and rocked him. Whether her possessiveness came with the traumatic events of the afternoon or something else she didn’t care. She wanted, needed really, to hold and comfort the kit. He was just happy to be held as he snuggled in. Rin was still curled into Ah-Un. They had all been shocked when Sesshomaru had returned with another inuyokai, his little ward who Kagome always thought was a sweetheart.

When Sesshomaru and Inuyasha returned from their hunt the delicious smell of blood hit her nose. She began to salivate and felt her stomach tighten painfully. In the back of her mind she knew she should have been appalled at such a reaction. Despite that she zeroed in on small doe slung over Inuyasha’s shoulder and ignored the feeling. She was starving and they hadn’t ate since before the battle with Naraku.

Dinner was a surprisingly fast affair and Kagome found that her cooking fire had been for little more than comfort as all they had done was eat the venison raw off the carcass. Sesshomaru had taken the first portion and sat by Rin, handing her a chunk which she eagerly wolfed down. Jaken warned the girl to slow down and she had actually growled at him causing the kappa retainer to shrink away. Amusement hovered over the group and Kagome realized with a start she could smell it. The experience was hard to describe but the closest she could come was it felt like a tangible aura. A little like spiritual or demonic energy without actually seeing or feeling it.

When the rest of the group grabbed their share of the doe the motions had almost been automatic, as though another part of her brain had taken over her body. Kagome knew she should be feeling disgust maybe, or even horror. Instead it felt right, _natural_ even, to indulge in the bloody bits. They even cleaned and ate the viscera. Later she realized that everyone but Inuyasha and the children had kept a sense of decorum however, trying to avoid a mess and even wiping off their bloody mouths with a swipe of thumbs.

The oddness of it all didn’t escape Kagome. She wondered what everyone else was thinking of it as she wiped her little kit’s mouth as a mother would.

“Ah, Kagome!” he complained and fussed, “I can clean myself!”

She smiled. “I know you can Shippo. I simply beat you too it!”

With that, her bright personality once again manage to ease the tension. Even if only a little.

She didn’t notice Sesshomaru studying her as she smiled and hummed a lullaby to soothe the kit who began yawning. Even Rin’s eyes were drooping.

Soon only the adults were left awake and the uncertainty started to press in again like the dark night. Sesshomaru decided to tell them his decision.

“We leave for This One’s mother’s shiro tomorrow,” he informed them. Everyone looked at their new leader in surprise.

‘ _He has a mother?’_ Kagome hadn’t ever thought of the cold yokai having a mother. She never even thought of them going anywhere. She had probably thought they’d be spending the rest of their days traveling Nipon’s wilderness finding things to do until the human population boomed. She wasn’t sure after that.

Her shoulders drooped and she looked at Shippo’s sleeping face. Nothing was going according to plan anyway.

“If you don’t mind me asking Lord Sesshomaru,” Miroku piped up, “What are we going to do at your esteemed mother’s shiro?” They were all curious. Kagome scented a strong pungent and sharp odor from where Inuyasha now sat on a limb of Goshinboku. Again, the voice in the back of her mind informed her what it was. ‘ _Anxiety.’_

She could only imagine why he would feel anxious about going to his half-brother’s mother’s home she thought sarcastically. Surprisingly though, Inuyasha stayed quiet. In fact, he’d been really quiet since everything happened. What was going through his head? Kagome was worried about him. She was worried about all of them actually. Everything still felt unreal to her. Miroku was one for keeping silent on his serious internal conflicts which wasn’t healthy and Sango was only so good at delaying emotional breakdowns. Who knew how scared the kids were.

“You three and Rin will be trained in what it means to be yokai,” explained Sesshomaru. “This one will take it upon himself, as your alpha, to do oversee your physical training while Mother will educate on the finer details of inuyokai culture.” He paused, taking in their reactions.

“This will remain so until you decide whether to leave the pack or stay under This One’s protection.”


	3. A New Path

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who commented, subscribed, and left kudos! I really appreciate it and it's honestly what keeps me motivated on this right now.

Chapter 3 – A New Path

The new and expanded inutachi left Inuyasha’s Forest as the sun began to steadily rise on its path in the sky. Kagome had slept fitfully that night, never truly falling asleep. Too many new things plagued her senses, especially the grime which covered her Miko garb and coated her skin uncomfortably. She would have stayed awake if it wasn’t the sheer exhaustion she felt. Despite this she honestly didn’t feel overly tired that morning.

‘ _It must be something with my yokai body. Or is it my yoki?’_ she wondered as she walked behind Sesshomaru. He was leading a steady pace at the head of the group, face forward and never once glanced back. But it was no wonder why in Kagome’s mind. She could scent Sango, Miroku, and Inuyasha behind her, all safe and at least physically healthy. Shippo and Rin sat on Ah-Un a little in front and beside her to which Jaken was again leading by reins.

As they traveled Kagome marveled at everything her heightened senses revealed to her. Besides the whirl wind of new smells she was constantly trying to understand, everything was more crisp. The amount of detail she could see with her eyes let her follow the smallest dust mote and it seemed while her sensitive hearing could hear humans distantly chatting in a village they passed even though they never once saw it.

Honesty she was impressed and a little horrified. There was a new found sympathy she felt for Inuyasha while he had put up with her screeching during their hunt for the Jewel shards. If she ever found herself human again she inwardly promised to be quieter than a mouse. Especially the one she could hear with its high pitched squeaking in the foliage to her left.

* * *

Kagome glanced at her friends for the umpteenth time that day. She had been keeping a close eye on everyone due to feeling partly (okay, _mostly_ ) responsible for their current predicament. The guilt that she felt made her extra aware of everyone’s moods and she secretly wondered if they blamed her. She certainly did even though she felt certain that the wish she made had been unselfish.

Poor Rin was still a little dizzy with everything and hunched over the dragon to try and block out the overwhelming world a bit. Shippo, ever the patient friend, sat with her as quiet support. Kagome caught his eye and gave him a bright smile to which he returned. Shippo knew that Kagome was still Kagome even if she was slightly different. In fact, he smelled what Kagome could only describe as happy. She could tell he was the only one feeling that way but it wasn’t his fault. He couldn’t know what it was like not feeling human.

Sango and Miroku held hands as they walked in silence, offering each other reassurance which gave a faint scent of something hopeful over the heavier one that Kagome could only describe as anxiety. Kagome felt a little better seeing them support each other, giving her optimism a boost and adding a lightness to her heart. She felt her lips twitch into a smile.

Inuyasha traveled in the rear some distance behind. His scent was thick with a swarm of emotions, none of them good. Kagome’s smile dropped immediately. As new and frightening as their new bodies were for herself and the rest of her human-turned-demon friends, she couldn’t help but feel Inuyasha got the worst of the deal. He’d been fighting for either acceptance or power from yokai all his life and now the only family he’s ever truly had besides his late mother had all become part of a world he would never truly be able to fully enter in his mind.

Kagome didn’t want to begin to imagine the fear going through his head.

She began to wonder more about why the Jewel had changed them as it did. Why hadn’t it changed Inuyasha too? Was this supposed to be a punishment for them? For Inuyasha? For her?

She buried the mounting questions away. Pondering all the whys would do no good now and what was done was done. She would need to figure out what a future would mean for her, but for now she drifted to the rear of the pack to walk in sync with her best friend whose surprise showed plainly on his face when he looked up to catch her bright smile. A small grin and answering “keh” escaped his mouth and she knew he felt a little better.

Some things never changed.

A slap echoed around the group at that moment. The friends looked up to a red-faced Sango march away from the prone form of Miroku who was emitting a rather odd rumble as he smiled innocently on the ground.

The rest of the group, minus Sesshomaru of course, gave the former monk flat looks.

Just like old times.

* * *

They arrived at the palace after two and a half days of walking. Sesshomaru, Ah-Un, and Kirara had generously transported those who did not yet know how to transform into their beasts (Kagome, Miroku, Sango, and Rin) or did not have the capability (Inuyasha, who was rather miffed about it).

Kagome was a little dismayed when Sesshomaru turned to face her the first time the entire trip as they were figuring out the ride-sharing.

“Get on,” he ordered with hardly a look in her direction. He had formed a cloud under his feet and was waiting for her to hop on. Kagome swallowed and peeked at the icy lord from under her bangs. She had caught a ride on the fur thing of his once but this was altogether different in her mind.

“Are, are you sure?” she squeaked and stuttered. His cool gaze and stony silence answered her. She looked at the rest of the group. Ah-Un was carrying the pups and Jaken while Sango and Miroku hopped on Kirara’s back. Inuyasha looked like he was trying to decide what to do.

“Can’t Inuyasha hop on while I ride with the kids?” She offered, hoping it would work.

“Hell no!” Inuyasha yelled, quick to dismiss the idea. “I ain’t riding with that bastard.” _Especially to his mother’s place_ was the inward plea she could sense was inside the nervous hanyo.

Kagome was ready to plead and had opened her mouth to do so but Sesshomaru interrupted her; “Get on, Miko,” he ordered again. His tone never changed but the slight rise of his yoki was finally enough to convince her.

She looked at the cloud dubiously for a second before tentatively stepping on the fluffy platform. When it held her weight she placed the other foot on and found herself within a few inches of the yokai lord. He still didn’t look at her but she knew he could smell her nervousness. She wasn’t really scared of him per se, they were allies after all, but she didn’t know this dangerous demon hardly at all and didn’t know what to make of him even though the voice in the back of her head she’d been hearing lately seemed to like him being around.

Inuyasha hopped onto Ah-Un behind Shippo, much to both Inuyasha and Jaken’s mutual irritation, and they were off, heading towards the clouds.

Kagome saw Rin smiling, the first one she’d seen since the ‘Change’ she called it, and could smell the genuine excitement coming from the little girl. She looked once more at Sesshomaru out of the corner of her eye and tried to discreetly scent him and get a sense of his internal state. Besides the almost overpowering musky scent of _male_ , and the usual cloak of wood scent and something delicately floral (which was more comforting than she was willing to admit), there was little she could figure out.

She shouldn’t have been surprised. He kept very, very tight control on his emotions. A part of her wanted to decipher the mystery that was the stoic daiyokai however. Besides, how bad could he be if Rin loved him and going to his mom’s place?

The ascent was quick and easy and Kagome was pulled from her meandering thoughts as they rose into the clouds and almost immediately saw a shiro more grand than anything she could have ever imagined. The estate sparkled in the sunlight as they passed through a yoki barrier strong enough to make any yokai of considerable strength have a second thought before considering an attack on the place. The pure power put into the barrier was enough for her hackles to raise.

Just how powerful _was_ Sesshomaru’s mom?

A beautiful demoness, practically Sesshomaru’s twin, greeted them at the entrance to her home as they landed. She and Sesshomaru seemed to consider each other, her with a small, sarcastic smile covered partially by a fan and he with his usual apathetic expression. The demoness’s amused gaze traveled over the odd group.

“Mother,” greeted Sesshomaru with an incline of his head, causing silver strands to shift. Kagome’s eyes shifted from mother to son, surprised. Did they not love each other?

A firm _s_ _nip_ of the fan was heard.

“Welcome home, my son,” replied the demoness. “Now tell me, what machinations have you involved yourself involved with this time?”


End file.
